The present embodiments relate generally to a damper system adapted to operate with an oven, for example, a residential or commercial cooking oven.
Conventional ovens vent products of combustion and cooking near the back of the oven chamber wall and at the top of the oven after traveling from the burner through the oven chamber and then to an output. The purpose of the output is to expel the products of combustion and secondarily to output the gases created by baking, cooking, and broiling. The oven temperatures are generally modulated by an off/on burner cycle. During the burner “on” cycle, air flows from the open bottom of the oven, through the oven cavity along with the combustion products, to the top of the oven. The hot air being lighter, it then egresses through the output at the top of the chamber. This output is sized to allow enough air flow to sustain an efficient combustion. During the burner “off” cycle, air continues to flow due to the diminished density of the hot air rising and exiting through the output. This continuous flow during the burner “off” cycle may produce substantial heat loss and wasted energy. Broiling works in a similar fashion with comparable air flow.
The provision of an output at the bottom of the chamber can save energy. In other situations, such as “clean up” operations, it remains desirable to provide an output at the top of the chamber. Selectively achieving various output positions is therefore desirable. However, existing damper systems capable of achieving various output positions for the egress of hot gases may add significantly to the back-to-front profile of ovens, which may be undesirable in residential settings and in commercial settings where space is at a premium.